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Not Father Material
-At some point Starscream would have gotten a message from Zephyr about where she had placed his hatchling. A cavern, somewhat on the small size, had been made over for her use and she is there now. Along one wall a small brood of her own is being tended to, but off to the side, on a bit of a raised platform, is the hatchling that had been given into her care. It is a strange amalgamation of the technological and the 'natural', but that is the Insecticon way. Zephyr, at present, is monitoring the non-butterfly hatchling herself while her drones tend for her own, small brood. -The seeker flies into the location, the sound of his engines nearly disrupting the small brood inside the cavern. He transforms with a coy smile, and lands gracefully near the Queen Insecticon, glancing over at the hatchling he's assigned her. "How goes it?" Starscream asks, "I see you've done what I've asked." -The drones easily soothe any disruptions while Zephyr approaches the Seeker. Inclining her head politely, she peers at him for a moment, blinking, before asking, "Why would I not do as you ask?" -"Heh," Stasrcream says, "that's a good question. Nevertheless, I end up having to ask it all the time anyway." His expression turns a little sour before his usual deceptive guise resumes. He brushes a hand under her chin briefly, before approaching the hatchling and observing it carefully. "How intelligent is he?" -"It's hard to tell precisely at this point," Zephyr says honestly. "Though he's healthy and is being well taken care of, and there's definitely no indication that there is a flaw." She purses her lips. "I haven't raised a dragonfly before specifically, but as far as I can tell, he has a very good size for his instar, and that's usually a good sign." -Starscream gives her a somewhat blank look, "...instar?" he appears to be a lot less knowledgeable about Insecticons than he'd originally claimed, "that's good to hear, I suppose, is there anyway we can accelerate his growth? Or, hasten his intellectual maturation?" he asks, studying the hatchling. He peers at the bug, wondering just how responsive he is. -The little guy is more animalistic than anything at the moment, though there is some degree of intelligence in his brilliant red optics. "I know of no certain way to achieve the exact results you are looking for," Zephyr says. Leaning down, she scoops up the much smaller Insecticon. Gently she holds it out to Starscream. "He's about three instars in; there's two more to go. Before he completes the last one, I suggest you spend a good deal of time with him. Usually when we raise our own the assumption is that they will become part of the hive. But, for your purposes, I would assume you want him to follow you over myself. Am I correct in this?" -Starscream stares at the bug, looking unimpressed and a little bit disgusted. He takes the insecticon gingerly, leaning his helm away from the creature, as if afraid the creature might excrete waste on him at any given moment. "Uh," he mutters, "whatever that means. And how mature will he be at that time," he says, quickly handing the insecticon back to her. -Zephyr takes it back, smiling faintly. She could be offended, and for a moment she almost is, but then she realizes that the 'Hollows' quite likely don't have the same sort of 'growth' adaptation as her own people. Setting the creature down carefully, she gives it a little pat on the head. "Once the final instar is over, he will be able to transform into a form more like you are used to." In other words, humanoid. "At that point the level of intelligence will be known. Depending on the state of the hive he came from could determine how likely it is that you will have a self-aware on your hands." She gives Starscream a long look. "If that is the case, it will be even more important that you spend some time with him before full maturity to ensure that he sees you in the most positive light." She looks thoughtful. "I confess I do not know much about your creatation and maturation process on the surface." -Starscream starts to look very bored, and he sighs dramatically, placing a hand on his fore helm. "Yes, that's all very well and good, now how long is this going to take?" he asks, suddenly sounding impatient. "Right, okay, I have to spend with him," he says, looking annoyed, "I get it." The prospect of this doesn't seem to please the seeker very much, and whether that is out of sheer ignorance of how to raise young or simply because the seeker doesn't want to waste the time, will remain a mystery. Then he smirks a little. "Well, I suppose I'm not a very good example, am I? After all, I was forged, and leapt out of the furnace fully endowed with all the skills and knowledge I'd ever need to know or use," he says airily. -"Interesting," Zephyr says, clearly more interested in the notion of his 'youth' than he is with his little project. "There are other ways that your people come into being?" She really only knows the one way for her own kind. Fanning her wings for a few moments, she shrugs her shoulders. "I will let you know when your presence is needed again. Though, perhaps, if you give me some notion of your intent then I can better let you know how much it is necessary for you to participate in the various remaining stages." -The seeker gives her a dismissive look, and waves a hand at her, shaking his helm. "That's fine, just tell me when he's old enough to be.. intelligible," he says, apparently unwilling to disclose his intentions for the insecticon. "And of course there are, not all of us were lucky enough to have come from a hot spot. Spark splicing, they call it." He shrugs and peers at the small insecticon once again. "I must take my leave," he says, his jet thrusters activating. -Spark splicing. Zephyr will have to look that one up. It also occurs to her it might possibly be prudent to look further into the nature of this mech she plans on handing a young Insecticon over to. Yet, on the other hand, it might be easier to remain ignorant; she has no wish to cross someone that high up in the Decepticon hierarchy. Putting it from her mind for now, Zephyr turns back to taking care of her own. -"As always, it's been a pleasure," The seeker says with a devious half smile. Starscream floats over to the queen and presses a kiss onto the side of her faceplate, "and thank you, I expect that when he comes of age, he will exceed my expectations." He smirks before transforming and flying out of the cavern, back towards Kaon.